Pirelli are Event Main Sponsor for Aragón, Riviera di Rimini and German Rounds
Championship tyre supplier furthers dedication to WorldSBK at MotorLand, Misano and Lausitzring
Dorna WSBK Organisation is pleased to announce that Championship tyre supplier Pirelli will increase their involvement in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship even further by becoming the Event Main Sponsor of the WorldSBK rounds at MotorLand Aragón, at the Lausitzring in Germany and on the Riviera di Rimini at Misano World Circuit in Italy. The Rounds are set to take place in April, June and September respectively, and will consequently be named the Pirelli Aragón Round, the Pirelli Riviera di Rimini Round and the Pirelli German Round.
Iconic Italian tyre manufacturer Pirelli has been the sole tyre supplier to WorldSBK since 2004, providing the Championship with world-class equipment with which to stage some of the most spectacular two-wheeled racing on Earth. This further commercial commitment ensures the Italian brand unrivalled exposure in the motorcycle world, cementing its place as an intrinsic part of WorldSBK and making the Pirelli Aragón Round the perfect opportunity to launch the new supersport tyre, the DIABLO™ ROSSO III.
“For Pirelli the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship is a really important platform to develop our range of tyres, which are all available on the market, as well as to increase our brand awareness all over the world,” said Giorgio Barbier, Pirelli Moto Racing Director. “The Championship has also been offering us the opportunity to communicate about our products and our philosophy in Asia and in America, which are markets with huge potential in terms of business. At the same time, as Event Main Sponsor of three European rounds, we want to strengthen our position in Europe which is, up until now, the most important market for us. To be able to exploit our involvement by using the Championship to organize some track days for the riders who love the Pirelli brand, and for the International Media Launch of our new Supersport tyre DIABLO ROSSO™ III, is another important plus.”
“Furthering their commitment to WorldSBK by becoming Event Main Sponsor of three rounds is fantastic news for the Championship,” added Marc Saurina, WorldSBK Commercial and Marketing Director. “Pirelli are a great example of how to make the most of our global sport and launching the new supersport tyre, the DIABLO™ ROSSO III, at the Pirelli Aragón Round is a perfect opportunity to get the most from being the Event Main Sponsor.”
The Pirelli Aragón Round is the first of the 2016 season to bear the Pirelli name and is set to get underway at MotorLand Aragón on the 1st of April, where bikes will be back on track for another stunning contest after an incredible weekend of racing in Buriram, Thailand. The Pirelli Riviera di Rimini Round will be held on the 17th-19th June, with the Pirelli German Round then set to take place at the Lausitzring on the 16th to 18th of September.
More, from a press release issued by Pirelli:
Pirelli Aragon Round: The Legendary Tire Manufacturer is the Events Main Sponsor for First European Round of the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship
The Third Round of the Series Will Mark Season Debut for Superstock 1000 FIM Cup and WIL Sports European Junior Cup Classes. Pirelli Will Have Most of Their Standard Solutions, Including Over 4,484 Tires and Will Reveal the New DIABLO ROSSO™ III Supersport Tire to International Press
ALCANIZ (Spain) March 30, 2016 – Beginning this weekend, the Spanish circuit of MotorLand Aragon will host the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship for the sixth consecutive year.
The event is particularly important for Pirelli, marking the first round of the year that is held in Europe and hosting all classes of the Championship. Pirelli will be the events main sponsor of the Spanish round and therefore the name of the event will be the Pirelli Aragon Round. This sponsorship, which will be replicated later this year at the Italian round of Riviera di Rimini at Misano World Circuit in April and in Germany at Lausitzring in September, confirms Pirelli’s commitment to use the Championship as a development platform for its tires and as an international showcase for the brand.
On Monday after the racing weekend is complete, international press will have the chance to test the new supersport tire DIABLO ROSSO™ III at Aragon. The tire was developed with the experience and knowledge acquired in the past thirteen years that Pirelli has been the official tire supplier of the FIM Superbike World Championship.
The Ciudad del Motor de Aragon, commonly known as Motorland Aragon, is a circuit located in the village of Alcaniz, which is a small town in the Spanish autonomous community of Aragon and designed by renowned German architect Hermann Tilke opening in 2009. The full circuit is 5,344 meters long, but the configuration used by the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship is 5,077 meters for a complete lap.
The track consists of aggressive asphalt, providing many challenges, especially on the rear tires. Its rough surface, combined with high temperatures and the possible presence of sandy debris created by wind, can become an important unknown factor in the early morning hours when causing severe wear and tear from the cold. The sand, which lies on the asphalt, prevents optimum contact between the tire and the asphalt, ultimately causing loss of grip in the distance and drift towards the center of the curve.
Pirelli is set to the meet the needs of all classes at Motorland Aragon, bringing 4,484 tires and providing riders mostly with the DIABLO™ Superbike and DIABLO™ Supercorsa SC standard tires along with new development solutions.
The solutions for the Superbike and Supersport classes
Spain will host the third round of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship, which will also be the first stage for the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup and the WIL Sports European Junior Cup classes. In Australia and Thailand, only the World Superbike and World Supersport classes were on the starting grid.
In regards to the SBK® class there will be a total of seven slick DIABLO™ Superbike solutions, three front and four rear, in addition to the rear qualifier tire that may be used only by riders that will partake in the second Superpole session. On the front, there will be the development SC1 S1699, available for the riders in the first two rounds as well as the front solution used the most in 2015, and the two standard solutions of the range, the SC1 and SC2. The SC1 will be used for the first time this year, in the softer front compound and range designed for low external temperatures and moderately severe tracks. It maximizes the surface contact and the “presence” of the front as well as being the solution preferred by riders who prefer a predictable tire that tells them when they are approaching the grip limit. It’s usually preferred over the SC2 at circuits with significant bumps because it guarantees the absorption of shock and vibration (chatter) in addition to providing a greater grip especially when cold. The SC2, already present in the first two rounds, is the medium hardness solution that is optimal for high external temperatures because it provides resistance to the tread band and favors the aggressive riders who prefer the compactness of the tread band in addition to greater solidity, stability and steering precision at corner entry.
On the rear, there will be the standard SC0, which already appeared in Thailand, using a soft compound ideal for smooth asphalt and high temperatures by offering maximum grip in those conditions. It also offers higher stability to thermal degradation of performance and is the most common rear solution in the World Superbike Championship. The standard SC1, which has a medium hardness on the rubber compound that is positioned halfway between the soft and hard solution, is the most popular solution when it is cold and asphalt is abrasive, such as when the SC0 cannot be used. The third solution is represented by the development SC1 U0989, which is more sustained on the sides to provide greater support to the rear. The fourth and final alternative is the standard SC2, the hardest solution of the range and used for severe and abrasive asphalt and in low external temperature conditions. Thanks to its characteristics, the hard compound is able to ensure excellent resistance to cold tearing (or tearing of the rubber from the tread band) and wear.
In World SSP there will be the DIABLO™ Supercorsa SC tires, plus two development solutions. On the front, there will be both the standard SC1 and SC2 in addition to the development S1485 that offers greater support in the approach to turns, providing better steering. At the rear there are two options: the standard SC1, already present in the first two rounds which provides a medium hardness of the compound and is positioned halfway between the soft and the hard solution, and the development SC1 U0563, which compared to the standard SC1 should provide even greater robustness.
The DIABLO™ Supercorsa SC will also feature in the minor classes, the Superstock 1000 is available with tires in SC1 compound at the rear and SC2 at the front, while the WIL Sports European Junior Cup will use SC2 at the rear and SC1 at the front.
All classes of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship have, in addition to dry tires and in the case of adverse weather conditions, access to rain tires such as the DIABLO™ RAIN and intermediate tires DIABLO™ WET.
The 2015 Pirelli statistics for Buriram